Lauren Goode, writing for Re/code:

I’ve been exploring some of the lesser-known features of streaming music services like Pandora, Spotify, iTunes Radio and Beats Music. Beats, of course, may soon be acquired by Apple for $3.2 billion. There’s a handful of others out there, including Rdio, Songza, Google Play Music and iHeartRadio, but the first four I mentioned are the ones I focused on for this column.

I’ve been a Spotify user for years, always with a paid Premium subscription, and I’ve always been very happy with it. They recently redesigned all of their client apps, which is a nice touch that helps keep the service fresh and attractive in my mind. And of course, their music catalog is top-notch.

As good as Spotify is, however, they’re facing increasingly tough competition from other streaming services like Rdio, Pandora, etc., so no matter how happy you are with your chosen service, it’s always good practice to keep an eye open and see what the others are doing.

At his point though, they’re all pretty good, so it’s probably a matter of personal preference more than anything. If you want to try one but are still undecided, I can easily recommend using Spotify. The fine folks over at The Sweet Setup, however, disagree and they recommend Rdio instead, so keep in mind that your mileage may vary. Fortunately, most services offer free tiers, so you can always try a couple and see which works better for you.

Via The Loop.